Sudan situation only getting worseSudan Tribune | Submitted by: lex
"The news media can no longer be blamed for not bringing light to the world about the more than 30,000 black African Muslims murdered by the Arab Muslim Janjaweed in Darfur, Sudan. The world has also been told of nearly 2 million of the survivors having been removed from their homes, many huddled in remote camps where epidemic diseases add to the corpses. And there is no doubt that the government of Sudan arms and supports the Janjaweed... Amnesty International, in its new report Rape as a Weapon of War, reveals that 'girls as young as 8 are being raped and used as sex slaves in Western Sudan.' ... In Congress, both the House and Senate are trying to avoid repeating America's utterly shameful silence during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. On July 22, by overwhelming bipartisan votes, the House and Senate passed resolutions stating explicitly that the horrors in Darfur are indeed genocide."

Lynch mob immolates rape suspectsIndependent Online | Submitted by: Lady Despair
"An angry mob in a township beat and stabbed three men they accused of raping a young girl, then covered them in petrol and tyres and set them alight, police said on Monday. A crowd of more than 350 residents confronted the men on Sunday night... 'They were beaten and stabbed. They basically used petrol and put tyres over the bodies,' he said. 'We can't say whether they were alive when they burnt them, or if they were already dead. The bodies were quite badly charred.'"

Boy survives having hand, ear, penis hacked offIndependent Online | Submitted by: Lady Despair
"Vicious attackers hacked off a boy's hand, ear and genitals and left him for dead in what police said could be part of the 'muti' trade in body parts for witchcraft. Sello Chokoe, 10, was in critical condition in hospital on Monday after he was attacked near the small village of GaMaleka in the country's rural northern province of Limpopo. Chokoe was searching for cattle in nearby mountains on Friday when he was attacked, hit on the head with a blunt weapon and left for dead, said police spokesperson Mohale Ramatseba... He said several similar crimes had happened in the area before and arrests were expected soon in the latest case after a flood of information from outraged locals."

Teen allegedly killed during jimson weed tripSan Diego Union-Tribune | Submitted by: }I{ Crazyhorse
"Riverside County investigators were looking for a large knife and other items on July 22 when they searched the Carlsbad home of Eric Sears' hiking buddy, Ben Fogelstrom, who had told them three days earlier that Eric was dead, according to a search warrant unsealed yesterday... Ben told authorities he and Eric ingested large quantities jimson weed that night, a hallucinogen that grows wild in the park, and Ben told authorities he started having visions. Ben said he spoke to a bush, an Indian and possibly to Eric, 'but could not recall if Sears was in fact present or a hallucination,' the document said. He recalled last seeing Eric near the campsite sometime July 15. That afternoon, Ben asked nearby campers to drive him to the ranger station, where he reported Eric missing. Ben was wearing only boxer briefs and had no explanation for what happened to his clothing. Later, a search found his shorts, which were blood-stained, the warrant said."

Explosives, fertilizer recently stolenINTELWIRE | Submitted by: optional
"Nearly three tons of stolen ammonium nitrate are unaccounted for in North Carolina, even as the U.S. braces itself against a possible al Qaeda truck bomb attack... Nearly a month after the theft was reported, 59 bags of the volatile fertilizer are still unaccounted for. Each bag contains 50 pounds of ammonium nitrate. Dozens of similar 50-pound bags were purchased by Terry Nichols and Timothy McVeigh for use in the Oklahoma City bombing... Five thousand pounds of ammonium nitrate were stolen from a Royster-Clark fertilizer plant in Winston-Salem, N.C., in early July... police had recovered 41 of the stolen bags, leaving 2,950 pounds of ammonium nitrate still missing... Police recently discovered a half-ton cache of ammonium nitrate being stored by suspected al Qaeda terrorists in London... According to the Juneau Empire Online, 'an unknown quantity of safety fuse and one-pound canisters of Pentex cast boosters, a high explosive,' were stolen from an Alaskan company in July."

Doomsday cult receives government grantSydney Morning Herald | Submitted by: Reid Fleming
"A doomsday cult led by a banned 'prophet' has been granted $332,000 in government funding to run a private school since 1996, it was reported today. The Australian newspaper said William Kamm, also known as Little Pebble, was a former bank worker who once predicted a tsunami would hit Australia's east coast. He believed his converts from the Order of St Charbel would survive the apocalypse once he was appointed as the last Pope... the federal government had granted the school $332,000 and plans to increase grants, now $3,527 per student, by an extra $1,107 per student by 2008... Mr Kamm was denounced by the then Archbishop of Melbourne George Pell when it was revealed he asked his female converts to bear his children, claiming he possessed the 'holy seed' to a breed a new race... the newspaper said funding for the school has concerned other Catholic groups which fear the cult could be building bunkers as a strategy to protect Mr Kamm."

Letourneau's crazy love lettersNew York Post | Submitted by: Crazy Quagga
"The revelations of the bombshell letters, obtained by The Post, come only days before the blond-haired felon is due to be released after almost seven years in prison for her forbidden love affair with her 12-year-old student Vili Fualaau... The former teacher, 42, also managed to sneak out at least five audio tapes to Fualaau - now 21 and the father of two children with Letourneau - that she recorded in a hushed voice under her bedcovers at night. The letters and tapes are alternately tender and violent, romantic and hateful... As a registered Level 3 sex offender, Letourneau will be subject to routine polygraphs and drug testing when she's released Wednesday. She's forbidden from making any contact with Fualaau and to date any man with minor children."

Child fitness expert allegedly murdered sonCanadian Broadcasting | Submitted by: greenphantom
"A well-known physical fitness expert who worked with children has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of his 11-year-old son in London, Ontario. David Carmichael, who was a national director of Canada's ParticipaAction fitness program, made a brief court appearance via a video link from a detention centre Sunday... His 11-year-old son Ian was found dead Saturday in a hotel room in London."

Florida purge list furnished by known fuckwitsMiami Herald | Submitted by: Reid Fleming
"A week before they directed local election chiefs to begin purging ineligible voters from the list of 48,000 convicted felons, state officials documented two years of failures and breakdowns with the $2.7 million contract with database vendor Accenture. A May 2 internal memo, ordered personally by Secretary of State Glenda Hood, details half a dozen missed deadlines and broken promises, failed software programs, repeated miscues and personnel problems. Two months after the memo, with newspapers including The Miami Herald detailing major flaws with the felon database that could have disenfranchised thousands, the state reversed course and told election chiefs not to use the felon list... 'This memo is striking,' said Howard Simon, Florida director of the American Civil Liberties Union. 'After two years of constant failures and fixes... they rushed this out the door.'"

Pennsylvania lawmaker hiccupping incessantlyPittsburgh Tribune-Review | Submitted by: The Munhall Flash
"Democratic state Rep. Larry Roberts, of South Union Township, Fayette County, has been hospitalized with a chronic case of hiccups, which has afflicted the lawmaker for about two weeks, according to his office manager. 'They can't stop the hiccuping. It is 24/7. It's tiring (for him). Physically he's fine, except for that... It will stop for maybe a half-hour; then it starts up again,' said Doris Perno, manager of the lawmaker's Uniontown office. Roberts has been a patient at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Presbyterian hospital since July 19 while doctors try to determine the cause of the problem."

Russian scientists whip up rich, chocolatey bloodLondon Telegraph | Submitted by: Sherlock
"It has always been the staple and highly nutritious food of vampires even if a diet consisting entirely of blood could hardly be considered balanced. But now scientists have found a way of turning it into biscuits, yoghurts and drinks. The scientists, from the Voronezh State Technological Academy in Russia, say that mass production could begin in six months. They also say that their blood-based foods taste as good as the real thing... Dr Antipova and her team decided to find a way to use blood 12 years ago after learning that a local meat plant discarded up to seven tons of it daily... the blood products are up to five times less expensive to manufacture than their dairy equivalents. The products contain virtually no fat, and red blood cells are a rich source of iron. Yoghurt made with plasma contains up to twice as much protein as dairy yoghurt."

Drug-sniffing dog apparently ODsBBC | Submitted by: Lady Despair
"A sniffer dog has died from a suspected overdose after a police drugs search. Springer spaniel Todd became ill after searching a car and field in Preston, Lancashire, and was taken to the vet by his handler, Pc Roger Moore. The seven-year-old was then transferred to the specialist animal unit at Liverpool University, where he died... A Lancashire Police spokeswoman said: 'Todd was taken to the vet, who confirmed his symptoms were similar to those seen in previous cases where amphetamines have been ingested.' ... There were no drugs seized during the search, Lancashire Police said."

Legal immigrant arrested for being a foreigneryokwe.net | Submitted by: Danger Dave
"Jimmy Mote, a thirty-three old from Majuro, Marshall Islands, came to the United States legally twelve years ago with non-immigrant status, but when he went to apply for an ID card renewal, he was detained by police... According to Mr. Mote, a policeman told him that he looked like a terrorist... He lived and worked in the United States under provisions of the Compact of Free Association agreement between the United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, giving RMI citizens the right to enter into and establish residence as a non-immigrants without any set duration of stay. That was not enough for Mr. Jim Rumple, area supervisor for the Drivers License and Traffic Safety Division of the North Dakota Dept. of Transportation."

Traffic light conspiracy alleged in Glasgow, EdinburghThe Scotsman | Submitted by: Reid Fleming
"To thousands of motorists faced every day with scenes of gridlock, suggestions that traffic lights are being rigged to cause chaos rather than ease it may hold some appeal. But one MSP has demanded 'an urgent investigation' following claims by an employee of Glasgow City Council that traffic light controllers are deliberately creating mayhem on the streets of Glasgow and Edinburgh to bolster the appeal of public transport. Nicola Sturgeon yesterday called on the Scottish Executive to take action following allegations that control staff regularly tamper with lights. Miss Sturgeonís calls for an inquiry follow anonymous correspondence from a whistle-blower, who flagged up safety concerns as a reason for highlighting the alleged abuse."

Princess Di fountain drainedWDIV-TV 4 Detroit | Submitted by: Westlander
"Bad luck and apparent poor planning have thwarted the hopes behind the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain in London's Hyde Park. On Sunday, the circular moat lay drained of water behind a 7-foot-high link fence to keep people out... The $6.5 million fountain, opened in a grand ceremony by Queen Elizabeth II less than a month ago, was closed indefinitely after three people, including a child, slipped and injured themselves while wading in it. Environmental experts blamed the designers, claiming it should have been obvious that a granite moat combined with flowing fresh water would be a breeding ground for slippery algae. Culture Minister Tessa Jowell criticized some of the visitors to the memorial for dropping litter, including diapers, into the fountain and allowing their dogs into the water."

Wal-Mart reportedly costs California taxpayers $86M annuallyUC Berkeley News | Submitted by: Reid Fleming
"Employment policies at Wal-Mart, the nation's largest employer, cost California taxpayers approximately $86 million a year in public assistance to company workers... Wal-Mart workers in California rely on the state for about $32 million annually in health-related services, and $54 million a year in other assistance such as subsidized school lunches, food stamps and subsidized housing... Wal-Mart essentially 'is shifting part of its labor costs onto the public,' the report said... the drain on the Golden State's public assistance coffers could intensify as Wal-Mart follows through on plans to open 40 new 'super centers' with combined retail and grocery operations around California over the next five years."

Ted Turner: FCC totally negligentWashington Monthly | Submitted by: Soylent
"Today, media companies are more concentrated than at any time over the past 40 years, thanks to a continual loosening of ownership rules by Washington... Yet instead of balancing the rules to give independent broadcasters a fair chance in the market, Washington continues to tilt the playing field to favor the biggest players... I freely admit: When I was in the media business, especially after the federal government changed the rules to favor large companies, I tried to sweep the board, and I came within one move of owning every link up and down the media chain. Yet I felt then, as I do now, that the government was not doing its job... At this late stage, media companies have grown so large and powerful, and their dominance has become so detrimental to the survival of small, emerging companies, that there remains only one alternative: bust up the big conglomerates."